ERIE COUNTY, NY – The Erie County Department of Health is making these announcements.

As of this afternoon, ECDOH is aware of 87 lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Erie County residents.

379 Erie County residents have tested negative, and tests for 171 people are pending as of this afternoon.

Erie County has made arrangements to purchase 400,000 N95 masks for use locally. The first shipment is scheduled for arrival on April 11. These masks will be distributed with area healthcare providers based on priority and need.

Child care providers or parents who are essential workers are asked to fill out a survey from the Childcare Resource Network (CCRN) at www.wnychildren.org. CCRN is the clearinghouse for childcare openings and for requests for child care openings.

Residents can call the Erie County Department of Social Services at (716) 858-8000 for an application for Temporary Aid to Needy Families (TANF). No in-person interview is required, and all interviews can be done by phone.

In response to many questions about restaurants and take-out food, we are reminding Erie County residents that even with the shift to take-out only services, restaurants still have to follow all food safety and sanitary regulations. Public health sanitarians are inspecting food facilities that remain open. Examples of how restaurants are adapting include:

o Ordering by phone & charge via credit card

o Customer calls when they arrive

o No interaction between restaurant and customers picking up

o Food placed in vehicle trunk

As an additional update to clinic services at the Jesse Nash Health Center at 608 William Street in Buffalo: PrEP patients can call (716) 858-2779 for medication refills and other questions. If a PrEP patient has concerns about an STI or suspects HIV infection, please contact Evergreen Health on South Elmwood Ave. in Buffalo at (716) 847-2441.

We will continue to provide updates about positive COVID-19 tests as they are confirmed and available. The Erie County Online Case Mapping Tool at www.erie.gov/covidmap is updated regularly.

NOTE: Since this came out, cases have risen to 96. The map hasn’t updated yet -JAP-